"I'm Too Old to Change"

TTTT: “I’m too old to change.”

Truth: It’s still worth it!

This is a special edition in the TTTT series spotlighting a guest contributor, Louise Lefler. 
This is her story...

Two years ago, at the age of 68, my health was spiraling down.  I was eating fast food for most meals, not exercising, and stress was a huge issue.  I started having daily digestive problems.  I was telling myself, “I am too old to make any changes and too old to start trying to lose weight and eat healthy.”  No one else told me that I was too old, but I believed this for several years.

I was missing out on family gatherings and my grandchildren’s sports activities.  Continuing to miss their important future events was a struggle I had to overcome.  Something had to change.  After much prayer and listening to what God said about me, not what I said, things started to change. 

My mind was where all the negative talk and self-destructive conversations were being held.  I realized I had to change how I think.  I started researching healthy foods, the right supplements, and learning everything I could about eating healthy.  I learned that stress affected my emotions and that my emotions were a trigger to unhealthy eating habits. 

It has been a very slow process and has taken me two years to lose 50 pounds. I have had many weeks where I did not lose any weight. I would think back to see if I was creeping back into old habits, like eating out too much and emotional eating.  I started journaling my food intake. It took me 18 years to gain weight so I knew it would be a long process, but some days I did get discouraged.  I had to remind myself, “I am not where I used to be” and keep going.

Thinking too far ahead can also cause me to be overwhelmed and discouraged.  A weekly or monthly meal plan feels like too much for me.  Every morning I remind myself to focus on my plan for today. Living one day at a time has become part of my mindset.

I am finally feeling better and am able to manage stress so that I don’t fall back into old eating habits.  It is nice to see the sizes going down instead of going up! The cool part about this is that I am now starting to feel ready for an exercise program.  The 50-pound weight loss was with no exercise.  Recently, I started physical therapy to learn how to stretch and build my muscles back to help support my body and also started a walking regiment (3 times a week).  Two years ago, I would have never dreamed that I would feel this good at 70 and even feel like exercising. 

In the past I have experienced many tragedies that gave me the excuse to reward myself with comfort food. Not anymore!  That was a temporary fix and did not really help me.  I do have some days where I might slip back into that habit, but my body does not like that at all.  I can feel the difference.  My spirit yearns for me to be healthy and care for this temple that God gave me.  That makes it easier to keep going. 

I speak scriptures from God over myself instead of letting my mind lead me astray.  I now believe that I am fearfully and wonderfully made and am a daughter of the King.  Jeremiah 30:17 is one of my favorite scriptures.

“I will restore health to you,
and your wounds I will heal,
declares the LORD.” Jeremiah 30:17

I am so grateful I stopped believing the lie that I was telling myself about being too old to change and lose weight.  I have not reached my target weight and some of my other health goals, but I am not where I used to be and that is what I hope you can see.  I am two years older since I started changing my life and I feel so much younger. 

Praise be to God.